Since Twitter is a limited forum (literally; 140 characters) I thought I’d use this space to answer more thoroughly and give others a chance to read it via this site. [By the way, if any of you reading aren’t familiar with DC’s Rebirth concept you can find out more here.]

My answer comes in tiers because I have both great dreams and limited optimism.

Tier 1 would be the ultimate package: we get a Captain Marvel whose historical identity has been restored. He’s named Captain Marvel, he’s working with the spirit of a Wizard named Shazam, and the creative team (specifically involving Doc Shaner) loves the character and is writing in the long established ethos of the character. We’d also get Mary, CMJ, and the rest of the Captain Marvel family back throughout the series. Cap is a sometimes member of the Justice League and gets called in from time to time, not always to settle down a rogue Superman.

Tier 2 would be (my attempt) at a compromise position. We’re stuck with the current Shazam name it appears, based on DC’s stated intentions. That means we also have a Wizard named… Wizard I guess. However, the creative team would calibrate the character according to Ordway’s Power of Shazam!, Morrison’s Thunderworld, and Shaner’s Convergence (which means they also wouldn’t buy the apparent editorial mandate at DC that everything be grimy in appearance and morally shady in narrative), providing the classic and yet modern take on Marvel’s characterization that has created generations of fans.

Tier 3 is the level at which I’ll become furious with the project if DC doesn’t have enough sense to incorporate (not at my suggestion but rather for the sake of sanity).

And here it is, the absolute bare minimum standard that DC Comics can and should do, both in their own interests and the interest of fans: